News by Subject Chemistry & Physics

Optogenetics uses light to control brain processes. It is based on light-controlled proteins such as channelrhodopsin-2, an ion channel that opens when it's exposed to light, thus activating cellular processes. In collaboration with colleagues from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the researchers from Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) have now shed light on its mode of action. The team headed by Professor Klaus Gerwert and Professor Peter Hegemann has published its report in PNAS on April 19, 2019.

Japanese scientists including researchers at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology and Yokohama National University have identified the molecular mechanism that gives the skin secretions of a species of frog effective antimicrobial properties. Unravelling the molecular mechanism that facilitates antimicrobial activity of these peptides can help us better understand how the defense system of the frog has evolved, and how this can be used to fight microbial infections of medical importance.

A study conducted by University of Arkansas researchers reveals that neurons in the motor cortex exhibit an unexpected division of labor, a finding that could help scientists understand how the brain controls the body and provide insight on certain neurological disorders.

An international research team led by The University of Tokyo modeled the growth of cerebral tracts. Using neurons derived from stem cells, they grew cortical-like spheroids. In a microdevice, the spheroids extended bundles of axons toward each other, forming a physical and electrical connection. Fascicles grew less efficiently when one spheroid was absent, and when a gene relevant to cerebral tract formation was knocked-down. The study further illuminates brain growth and developmental disorders.

Based on the analysis of the genomes of more than a dozen flightless birds, including an extinct moa, a team led by Harvard researchers found that while different species show wide variety in the protein-coding portions of their genome, they appear to turn to the same regulatory pathways when evolving flight loss.